Pulling You Up, Dragging You Down
by kitkit11183
Summary: After the events of KHII, Lea wakes up at an empty alleyway, to find that he and Isa are alive. The problem is that Isa won't wake up. Once he does, it appears that Isa has forgotten everything, including his best friend, Lea. On hiatus.
1. Prologue x Fading x

**Heavy spoilers. Post-game.**

**Rated for swearing.**

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts? Mine? I can't even put those words in the same sentence, and if that were actually true, then I would be rich and not writing fanfiction of what I already own. So no, Kingdom Hearts is not mine (oh, wait! I successfully put the words in the same sentence!)

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_"He made me feel like I had a heart."_

Fading. He was fading away.

There was no pain to be felt, mentally or physically.

He knew that he was disappearing into nothingness. He could see the black tendrils of darkness licking at his body, greedily claiming him for their own. After all, he_ had_ put all of his being into that last attack. If he even had a being, that was. Either way, he was a goner.

Before he completely disappeared, he knew he had to say one more thing to the spiky haired brunette kneeling next to his prostrate body.

"You… made me feel the same."

He saw the worry and surprise in Sora's blue eyes. The surprise was probably from what he had just declared. As for the other emotion… Ha. Worry for a Nobody? The notion itself was laughable. The sentiment would be wasted on a creature like himself, after all.

He was running out of time. Summoning the last bits of his energy, he opened up a Corridor of Darkness, and watched as Sora and his strange comrades (a talking duck and a talking dog?) disappeared through it. It would take the brunette to the castle where Kairi was held captive by Saix.

_Saix. _No. _Saix_ was merely the empty shell of _Isa_. Then again, he was the empty shell of _Lea_, Isa's best friend. Saix could never make him "feel" anything. Roxas did. Sora did. Isa never had the chance, because he and Lea ceased to exist the day Saix and Axel were born.

He wondered whether he'd ever see Isa again or not. Heh. Why was he thinking about the best friend of his Somebody, and where was he even getting all of these sentimental thoughts from? He shouldn't have been able to feel any sentimental value, or anything, for that matter. He was a Nobody: a heartless creature.

Whatever. With his job done, he could rest. Not that he would be going to an afterlife or anything. No, it would be like he never existed.

His conscious was fading. It wouldn't be long before he completely vanished. He closed his eyes.

_Good bye, Isa.

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**Hello, everyone! This is my second fanfic, and I hope you enjoy reading it. It will be a fic that delves more into the**_** friendship**_** between Isa and Lea, and it is set after Kingdom Hearts II. I'll try to keep all the characters in character as I see them. **

**The story is mainly based on Mr. Nomura's statement from an interview: when a Heartless gets destroyed by the keyblade and its heart joins with Kingdom Hearts, and then its Nobody dies, it makes them whole again. **

**I'm going to break a few things that are canon, though. This fic will not pay attention to anything from KH 3D (and at the time of writing this, the game has yet to come out). I also forget whether or not the Heartless completely disappear from Radiant Gardens, so I'm just going to say that there are still some Heartless remaining in the worlds. Adds more interest that way, and I don't have to get around to making some new enemies. **

**I have one question for readers, and I would be grateful if it was answered. Do I have to put disclaimers on every single chapter in my fics? **

**That about wraps up my very long author's note. Oh, yes. If there are any grammar or spelling errors, inconsistencies in verb tense, sentences that don't make sense, or anything that looks remotely out of place, please PM me so I can review the fic and fix those mistakes. I don't have a beta for this story, and after rereading my own writing five times or more, my eyes skim over some errors. **

**Feel free to leave constructive criticism (it really helps!) or other remarks. Thank you for reading. **

**Also, thank you to everyone who reviewed my first fic. It made me really happy.**


	2. Awakening

xXxXx

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_Fading…_

_He was wandering aimlessly in a world of complete darkness, only dimly aware of the soft sounds made as his footsteps followed him.  
_

_Fading…_

_He saw a shimmering glow briefly illuminate the void. Thoughtlessly, he ran to it, as if he had been seeking it all along._

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Cold winds scraped across buildings with sylphs whispering among themselves about the forthcoming of a storm. The sky was nude, as it was too bright to make out the twinkling stars, yet dark enough that there were only faint traces of the orb that had just slipped down the western horizons. Almost every denizen of the city was returning to the safety of their homes, save for two teenagers, peacefully slumbering on the ground in the middle of a dark alleyway, hand in hand.

One of the teenagers groaned as he began to struggle against the confines that sleep held him in. His eyebrows furrowed and his eyelashes fluttered in a battle to open his eyes, until they finally succeeded, revealing two emerald orbs, dimmed by the darkened sky. They widened in an almost comical expression of surprise and his entire body snapped into a sitting position, as if he was amazed that he was still alive.

His movements did not disturb the body lying near him from sleep.

With a jolt, Axel realized that he wasn't deleted, although he wasn't sure about the full details of how that happened because the last thing he remembered was that he had basically committed suicide due to an overpowering impulse to save Sora from the endless army of Dusks, which ended with him being absorbed by the darkness.

He was alive (technically he wasn't, because Nobodies didn't even exist in the first place), and...

Was that relief that he felt?

It was impossible. He was a Nobody. He couldn't feel emotions.

Yet there it was again, the slight feeling of gratefulness at the fact that he was alive and not erased from existence forever, completely outweighing the suffocating feeling of despondence that should have come with "dying."

It was a lie. It was all an illusion someone had trapped him in to torment him beyond reasoning. It couldn't have been possible that-

He pressed the palm of his hand near his chest area and felt the steady beat of his heart.

-He had a heart again. _He had a heart again?_

No way.

Axel looked down at himself, really looked. He saw that instead of the black Organization cloak that he usually wore, he was decked in the same outfit that Lea used to wear all the time. A yellow bandanna with checkered and striped patterns hung from his neck carelessly, covering a good portion of the orange vest that he wore atop a sleeveless white shirt. His tan, baggy pants were rumpled from his sitting position, and he had on the black-laced red and white sneakers that Lea had spent forever saving his allowance on. Underneath the shoes were a pair of black socks.

Axel panicked at the realization that he wasn't wearing the Organization robes. The cloak hadn't been made to show off what a horrible sense of the taste the Organization had. No, it was specifically tailored to protect the wearer from the Darkness. If he didn't have it on, Axel would be absorbed by Nothingness pretty soon.

Wait. He felt… panic?

Yes. Where there should have been emptiness was the slight sense of foreboding, the twinge of fear that he got when he felt his existence threatened.

He had a heart again.

It wasn't a lie.

He had a heart again.

His pessimistic reasoning and denial had no hold over the burst of happiness that swelled within him like a balloon.

He had a-

Axel told himself firmly in his head to shut up before he repeated the same sentence for the fifth time.

He felt the reverse of what he had "felt" when he woke up feeling disoriented after the Heartless invasion. Back then, when he tried to recall any emotion -even the tiniest fragment -all he received was a blank, empty coldness. Now it was like the barrier in his heart had lifted and a sea of emotions overflowed inside: relief at being alive, happiness and surprise at regaining his heart, sadness because he couldn't ever see Roxas again-

Axel stopped, because he realized that he wasn't Axel anymore. Now that he had his heart back, he was Lea again, wasn't he? He was a Somebody, not a Nobody. Did it really matter what his name was, though? But-

_Isa._

-He would deal with all of this confusion later. For now, his attention was focused solely on the currently unconscious bluenette lying prostrate on the ground near him.

Isa looked just like he had before his heart was ripped out by the Heartless. His hair was blue and shorter than Saix's was, although the style was very much the same. He had no x-shaped scar like his Nobody, and his face was completely unmarked by battle. He was wearing the same short-sleeved, high-collared jacket complete with the yellow crescent moon symbol emblazoned on the left breast of the navy coat, along with a pair of white pants and black boots.

Lea barely noticed that he was still grasping Isa's hand as he cogitated over their current situation.

The fact that Isa was there with him meant that Saix must have died and miraculously regained his heart, like Axel did.

Axel and Saix had hardly gotten along on good terms. Axel only listened to Saix because of their plot to overthrow the Organization and the lingering memory of their Somebodies being best friends, but that tiny truce was broken the moment a spiky haired blond wormed his way into Axel's non-existent heart._ But…_

Saix wasn't Isa. Isa wasn't Saix. Just because their Nobodies were at odds with each other, it didn't mean that they should, because Isa and Lea were best friends forever (cheesy as it sounded). _So..._

They were best friends again, right? Maybe things wouldn't be the same anymore, because their lives as Nobodies would always haunt and nag at the corner of their minds, but they could try to patch things up. Now that he had his best friend back, Lea had only one option.

"Wake up, Isa."

He received no response.

Lea cautiously nudged and prodded the bluenette in hopes of awakening him, but to no avail. The bluenette did not even stir, and continued his soundless sleep.

Lea felt a flicker of annoyance at being ignored and briefly considered drawing on Isa's face with a permanent marker (old habits died hard), but dismissed the idea because,_ A_, he didn't_ have_ a marker, and, _B_, Isa probably would have been more likely to murder Lea than he already was, due to the fact that Isa's memories of his Nobody might have spurred him on to attack Lea on sight.

It was both good and bad that Isa wasn't waking up yet. The positive side was already mentioned (Lea wouldn't die just yet), but as for the negative side...

Isa was always the smart one: the one who made all the plans. Lea was always the one who came up with random ideas and forced Isa to turn them into reality. Lea was the leader, but Isa was the planner. It was sort of pitiful that he relied on the bluenette so much, but without Isa awake, Lea was sunk.

Well, not really. His days as a Nobody gave him more experience in surviving, although his survival skills mainly consisted of backstabbing his colleagues and then going out for sea salt ice cream with his spiky haired blond friend as if he hadn't just betrayed several of their allies. Yes, the Organization was a _wonderful_ place of daisies and sunshine. He digressed.

Anyways, it wasn't like Lea could just open up a Dark Corridor to wherever he wanted, not that he had tested it out yet.

Lea raised his arm and focused on gathering energy from darkness and attempted to form a portal.

Nothing.

Damn it. His powers over darkness had vanished, along with his identity as a Nobody, although he still had memories of his Nobody days. Strange.

Either way, it wasn't like he could just stay in the alley the entire day. The sun had already set completely, throwing the world into pitch blackness, if it were not for the stars faintly lighting up the velvet night sky (Lea had to snort at the adjectives he used), or the streetlights that dimly lit out his surroundings. Not to mention that it was getting windy enough for Lea to shiver and curse the fact that his sleeveless orange jacket did nothing to help him conserve body heat. The long, black robes of the Organization that Axel used to wear would have been much more effective in keeping him warm.

He lifted Isa slightly until the bluenette was in the same position as himself, and then hugged his friend closer to his body, fearing that Isa would catch a cold. He also hoped that Isa's body heat would make up for the lack of his own. It didn't work, however, because Isa's body was as freezing as a giant block of ice. Was his body always that frigid? Hopefully, Isa wasn't dead (and Lea wasn't thinking of vandalizing Isa's coffin -_of course_ _not_), although Lea doubted it, because he had felt a pulse emitting from Isa's wrist.

Great. Maybe it was time to check if his affinity for fire had left him along with his powers over darkness.

_Fire._

Lea concentrated on gathering heat into the palm of his hand, feeling relieved as tiny sparks of light clustered together until they formed a small, flickering fireball.

Looking at the flames, he considered singeing Isa's hair. The idea was very tempting, but it would have probably resulted in Isa having uncontrollable homicidal urges. Isa was proud of his hair and always spent a very long time styling it so that it would achieve the look that he usually had his hair in. Of course, at the moment, Isa's hair was slightly messed up from lying on the ground too long.

Now that he and his friend had a source of warmth, he could slowly plan out his next move. First of all, which world were they on?

Since they were currently in an abandoned, dark alleyway, Lea really couldn't tell. He scowled. Why did all of the worlds have similar looking alleyways, anyways? They were all dark, creepy places with wooden crates stacked randomly near the walls of nearby buildings, and were usually dimly lit up by nearby streetlights to achieve very creepy effects. Hadn't the constructors ever heard of originality?

This really wouldn't do. He and Isa would probably end up freezing to death in a random, spooky alleyway that belonged to who-knew-which-world-they-were-on, because Lea's flame was starting to extinguish. He had no clue how many casts of fire magic he had before he was sapped of all of his mana. With their current luck, Lea guessed that they would be dead by the next morning.

The other choice of action was to carry Isa around piggy-back style while trying to score them a room to stay in, but it was night time, and Lea didn't want to take unnecessary risks. What if the inhabitants of this world were unfriendly and found pleasure in trussing up travelers in a rope and boiling them in a giant pot of stew? Or what if the denizens were the suspicious kind that accused nearly everyone of witchery and wanted to burn unfamiliar faces at a stake? Or what if-

Lea broke out of his morbid thoughts. He swore that he saw his shadow _move_. He warily stared at his shadow, his entire body on guard and ready to defend Isa and himself.

If Lea was still the naive, innocent (okay, maybe he wasn't so innocent, considering the fact that he kept trying to break into the Radiant Garden castle as well as plotting other pranks on a daily basis) boy he used to be before his home world was invaded by the Heartless, he would have dismissed the moving shadow as a figment of his own imagination. However, now that he was well experienced in what happened when one scoffed at the notion of moving shadows existing, he wasn't too keen on the idea of repeating the entire ordeal. After all, the moving shadow could always turn out to be-

_Heartless._

He froze and gazed in horror as five sets of antennas began to slowly rise from the shadows. After the antennas appeared, the deformed, large black heads of the Shadow Heartless appeared next, revealing pairs of yellow eyes. Last, the rest of their bodies arrived as they clawed their way out from the darkness they were hiding in.

_Shit._ The Heartless had surrounded them.

Luckily, Shadows were the easiest types of Heartless to take out. A few casts of fire would probably have them vanishing.

On the other hand, if he wasted all of his magic in one battle, he and Isa would freeze to death.

Great. He now had two ways of dying: getting his heart clawed out yet again after _just regaining it_ or turning into a solid ice cube. Isa being unconscious did nothing to help matters. He seriously considered giving his "friend" a first degree burn just to wake him up, but decided against that because Isa would most likely attack him instead of the Heartless if he tried using that method to wake Isa up. Self-preservation was pretty high up there on his current list for him to consider risking such a tactic.

Of course, he had yet to attempt to summon his chakrams.

Keeping a wary eye on the Shadows, he hugged Isa protectively to his chest using one arm and raised his other arm to concentrate on making the spiky, circular weapon of his appear.

No dice.

They were fucked_._

Lea could mentally see Isa scowling at him for his choice of words. Damn it. Isa needed to stay out of his thoughts. It wasn't like he had cursed out loud. And now Lea was arguing with Isa in his _mind_. The day must had been really stressful for him to think of such insanity. Either that, or his brain was currently going hysterical in the face of danger, although truth be told, Lea was being remarkably calm about the entire situation.

The fact remained that there were five Shadows staring at him with their beady yellow eyes. For now, the little black buggers were content to remain staring at him unblinkingly as he continued his internal monologue.

That didn't change the fact that he and Isa were screwed.

With no other choice, Lea tensed and prepared himself to fight off the Heartless single-handed (literally, too, since one of his arms was still wrapped around Isa's torso). Isa was going to owe him big time if they survived this.

The Heartless noticed the tensing of the redhead's muscles and decided at that moment to spring.

Lea quickly summoned a few fireballs and threw them at the Heartless. His aim was slightly off, directly burning away three into temporary oblivion but only singeing two, and they were still launching themselves at Isa and Lea, claws outstretched and ready to rip out the humans' hearts.

_Damn it._ Lea panicked and rapidly summoned a few more orbs of fire and threw them, watching as they made contact with another Shadow. He was drained and felt completely depleted of mana at this point. This was pathetic. What had happened to the expert assassin he used to be? Oh, yeah, he wasn't a Nobody anymore, and his human body couldn't take much strain. His head felt dizzy and the remaining Shadow leaping at him looked like a blurry, rabid version of the Easter bunny. His eyelids drooped as he gave in to the inevitable.

Ha. He must have done something horrible in his past life for him to get his heart ripped out, regain it, and get it ripped out again. Come to think of it, he did kill quite a lot of people (and Nobodies) when he was in Organization XIII, if that counted. At that thought, a wave of guilt hit him. He had murdered in cold blood. The thought was unbelievable for Lea, who wasn't protected from feeling contrition due to the fact that he actually had a heart.

Maybe he actually deserved what he was about to get. His Nobody had done many inexcusable things when he had existed. The worst part was that Lea remembered every moment with perfect clarity. He could see the tears on the faces of innocent children as they watched their parents get slaughtered by the Heartless that _he _had commanded. He remembered the screams of every single victim he had written off with his own hands. Every kill, every assassination he was told to carry out by the Organization... He had done them all without a single protest, hadn't he?

Lea shook his head. He was starting to confuse his memories with those of Axel's.

Furthermore, if his heart was ripped out, his emotionless husk would probably give birth to a Nobody again, and Isa was going to share the same fate.

Isa... Isa didn't deserve it. Sure, Saix had done plenty of terrible deeds in the Organization, but Isa was nothing like Saix. Isa would have never done anything as cruel as shutting Lea out forever. He would have never used his partner to do the dirty work. Isa shouldn't have had to remember the atrocious things that Saix did.

But... Did the same hold for himself as well? Should he be forced to retain his memories as a Nobody?

No. He wasn't Axel. He would never be like Axel.

And unlike Axel with his suicidal urges, Lea wanted to _live_, damn it!

He heard the metallic slicing sound of weapons flying into the air-_but that was probably just the Heartless's claws_- and the soft thud as something impaled itself into flesh- _probably just the Heartless sinking it's talons into his chest_-

Wait. He didn't feel any physical pain. Lea took that as a good sign and wrenched his eyes open to find the blurry outline of a short person who wore an outfit of dark colors that showed a lot of skin, standing in front of a indistinct silhouette of a giant four pointed star.

"Are you okay? I'm the Great Ninja Yuffie! Who are you guys?"

The voice definitely belonged to a girl, and she was saying something, but the words hardly made sense to Lea. He was so tired… _Tired_… The world swirled in front of his eyes before they closed again, his whole body slumping forward, with him still clutching Isa in one arm as sleep overtook him.

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AWAKENING-END

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**Thank you for reading, and thanks to all reviewers. I really appreciate them for the motivation they bring.  
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**I'm finally satisfied with this chapter, although it is very slow. Hopefully, the storyline will pick up pace in the next few chapters.**

**Yuffie**** Great Ninja Yuffie makes her grand entrance! You can probably guess which world Lea and Isa land on, as well as where this is going. Heh.**

**I see Lea as the impulsive trouble-making sort of guy who worms his way out of trouble with his adorableness. Amazingly, he's actually thinking of the consequences before pulling pranks on Isa! I can also see him being a really protective friend, so now that he has Isa back, he wants to protect him. Or something like that. (Of course, his inner prankster leads to him wanting to mess around while Isa's unconscious. That, and Axel's memories sort of spite him into wanting to pull some mean tricks.)**

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**Next chapter:**

_"Deciding not to attack any inhabitants of his home world was one thing. Isa and Lea-whether they used to live in the Radiant Gardens or not -were another thing."_


	3. Acquainting

xXxXx

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Ienzo had anticipated it ever since he had found himself lying on a random alleyway a few weeks ago, alive and with a beating heart. This was why when he saw the raven hair ninja march through a pair of glass doors and into the infirmary hoisting two _very_ familiar figures on her shoulders, he wasn't the least bit surprised (at the inhuman strength of the frail looking girl and the identity of the two people she was carrying). In fact, the only indication he gave that suggested he had noticed them was by the twitch of a slender eyebrow, and even that was hidden underneath his silver-blue bangs, which were long enough to cover the entire right half of his face.

It was just as well that both he and his Nobody weren't the type to outright attack people that they held grudges against, or else both Seven and Eight would very well be dead the moment they were lugged through the glass doors. Or rather, the unfortunate, unconscious duo were the Somebodies of what used to be the Organization's seventh and eighth members, but that fact didn't deter Ienzo from his hostile thoughts.

He could still vividly recall the way that Axel had sicced Vexen's failed experiment on his weakened Nobody and watched with something that was almost like amusement, but it _wasn't_ because they were _Nobodies_ and as a result, _couldn't feel_. Furthermore, Ienzo was very sure of Saix's involvement in the assassination attempt because Eight was hardly the type to see things through to the end unless he was ordered to.

Really, it was a pleasant surprise that the ninja, Yuffie Kisaragi, had decided to bring the two people that Ienzo currently despised the most to the one place where he had a justified excuse to inflict the most bodily harm on them. While physical pain wasn't Ienzo's favorite method of torture (it was too unrefined and messy compared to destroying the enemy through the mind), it was the best way to go about things , what with his current position among other things.

Ienzo had somehow been promoted to an assistant healer in the short time after he was found. Apparently, he could still recall some basic cure spells along with some other useful magic, but wasn't powerful enough to be deemed a threat, and the survivors of the Radiant Gardens had been desperately in need of some healers after the huge war against more than a thousand Heartless (which was later creatively named "Battle of the 1000 Heartless").

The members of the Restoration Committee had been wary of him at first, especially the inapproachable brunette- named Squall, according to Yuffie- who preferred to be called Leon for some unknown reason, and was the de facto leader of the Committee. The were mostly suspicious of the silver-blue haired boy because he used to be a Nobody (they didn't find out because Ienzo admitted the fact, but rather his adopted father, Ansem, had left a few reports that incriminated the six researchers who used to study the heart and eventually ended up as the founding members of the Organization).

Fortunately, Ienzo was a skilled manipulator and within a few days had everyone convinced that he wasn't going to ambush them in their sleep. He wouldn't have done it, either, because there was nothing to gain.

Admittedly, Leon still watched him out of the corners of his sharp, blue eyes, as if daring Ienzo to do something that would condemn him to the grave, but Ienzo wasn't stupid enough to take the bait, what with his weakened state and the fact that the Restoration Committee was filled with strong fighters.

Deciding not to attack any inhabitants of his home world was one thing. Isa and Lea -whether they used to live in the Radiant Gardens or not -were another thing.

No, Ienzo wouldn't _kill_ them off. There would be no enjoyment to be gained if he let them die quick, painless deaths (in their sleep, no less). Instead, he had the option of pleasantly watching as vials of potions were forced down Lea's throat. Or rather, he would be the one to do the forcing.

Oh yes, Ienzo knew that Lea absolutely despised the taste of any kind of medicine, including but not limited to potions, healing herbs and elixirs. After all, didn't the three of them -Ienzo, Isa and Lea - use to hang out and eat sea-salt ice cream all the time before the Heartless invasion? Admittedly, Ienzo used to be quite occupied with his work as a scientist and Lea had been too busy dragging Isa into whatever trouble he planned on stirring up, but occasionally, the three had met to enjoy each others' companies. Ah, the benefits of friendship. Ienzo nearly cracked an evil grin as he thought of ways to torture his so-called friends. He didn't, of course. Crack a grin, that was.

He turned his attention to the ninja girl who appeared to be close to bursting from curiosity. He had left her waiting long enough while he mused, judging from the fact that Yuffie had already managed to set down both Isa and Lea in separate beds in the otherwise empty medical ward and was currently drumming incessantly on the headboard of the bed she was sitting on.

It looked like he would have to humor her. But first, he had to play the role of a caring healer and diagnose the redhead and bluenette's conditions.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Yuffie had just been making her nightly rounds around the Bailey, checking for signs of any unwelcome Heartless lurking around, when she had come upon what could have been generously described as a fight scene. In the alleyway formed by the building she had been standing on and one other, a boy with hair spiky enough to rival Cloud's and Sora's had been attempting to singlehandedly defend his unconscious friend from a group of Shadows. The boy's emerald eyes stood out prominently when coupled with his red spikes, especially as he launched fireball after fireball at the Heartless.

Coincidently, Yuffie had been deciding when would have been a good time to step into the fray when she had noted that Red -she had come up with that nickname on the spot -had run out of ammunition and was currently slumped to the ground, still holding the blue haired boy. A long story made short, Yuffie took that as a cue to enter the scene, what with a Shadow reaching claw-outstretched for the two teenagers' hearts and nobody else around to help.

She had swiftly thrown her giant shuriken at the Heartless and erased it before quickly making her entrance as the boys' savior. The least that Red could have done was to play along. Instead, he had the nerve to faint while Yuffie declared that she was the "Great Ninja Yuffie."

As annoyed as she should have been for having her self introduction ignored, Yuffie had understood. After all, she had figured that it must have been quite tiring for a civilian to fight off a group of Heartless, even if they _were_ Shadows.

The thoughtful side of her had decided to bring the two males to the medical wards, where Aerith or some other healer would be able to patch them up, not that the two had any visible wounds. Yuffie had then effortlessly hefted the two unconscious bodies onto each of her shoulders and proceeded to dash the infirmary at her super ninja speed, marveling slightly at the wonders that her recent physical training with Leon had yielded.

This was the reason why Yuffie was currently found sitting on an otherwise empty hospital bed in the infirmary she had been heading to, impatiently tapping the bed's headboard as her curiosity threatened to overflow.

Just _who_ were Red and Blue? She was sure that she had never seen them before the events in the alleyway. Were they similar to Ienzo…?

Just when Yuffie thought she couldn't take anymore of being left in the dark, a polite voice spoke up.

"I'm finished, Yuffie."

Yuffie's attention focused itself on the silver-blue haired boy who had spoken, before she burst into speech. "How are they? Is there anything wrong with them? Or are they just tired? I mean, I seriously doubt that they are fighters, because Red was doing poorly when he fought the Shadows. And where'd they come from? I don't think I've seen them before. They are fine, right?" She had said it all in one breath, although she had considerately lowered her voice so as to not disturb the resting males.

Ienzo, true to his nature, was not the least perturbed by Yuffie's talkative ways, or even if he was, he didn't show it on his constantly impassive face, aside from a small eyebrow raise at Yuffie's nickname for the redhead. Instead, he patiently answered all of her questions. "No, I do not believe there is anything particularly worrisome about their state. They are merely resting. As for the rest of your questions, I believe that the two of them are more suited to answering them."

Right on cue, the redhead shifted in the bed as he struggled to awaken.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

_He couldn't sense anyone around him._

_There was nothing but darkness in his surroundings._

_It was cold._

_So very cold…_

_Where was he?_

_In a void of darkness..._

_He was wandering._

_Why?_

_Because..._

_He was… looking for something._

_...Something very important to him._

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Lea woke up with a gasp and rose into a sitting position with a start as his hands clutched tightly to his bed sheets. He was tensed and ready to fight off the Heartless and to protect Isa.

Speaking of which, where the hell _was_ the bluenette?

He did a double take when he realized that he wasn't in the dark alleyway anymore. He groggily noted the soft sheets covering the bottom half of his body and the cushiony material he was sitting on as his eyes recovered enough to do a sweep of his current surroundings. They wandered over to the bed next to him and he noticed with no small amount of relief that Isa was tucked into a similar bed to his, although he was still unconscious.

They were in what appeared to be a hospital, what with all the medical equipment and glass cabinets stocked full of potions. At the latter observation, he grimaced.

Just how did they get there?

He must have asked that question aloud, because a voice spoke up with a low volume, cautious to not disturb the bluenette from his slumber. "I'm quite pleased to see that you have regained conscious, Lea. I suppose I will leave the two of you to get better acquainted. I wouldn't wish to offend Aerith by not eating the meal that she kindheartedly prepared."

Lea's orbs traveled from the potions that he was disdainfully ogling to the slowly retreating lab coat covered back of a boy with silver-blue hair. He followed the figure until the mysterious child who had spoken had left the room through a set of glass doors, still curious as to just how he had missed the youth in his initial sweep of the room and of what the fellow had meant by "leaving the two of them to get better acquainted."

The second object of inquisition was immediately answered in the form of a black blur that had bounced over to his side the second the silver-blue haired boy had fully disappeared from Lea's view.

Lea barely had time to blink at the friendly violet orbs that curiously stared back at him before the owner of the pair of violet eyes' mouth opened and a stream of words poured out.

"Your name's Lea? Nice to meet you! I'm Kisaragi Yuffie! Call me Great Ninja Yuffie!"

The speed at which she had said the words had been so quick that Lea's brain had little time to wrap itself around them. He ended up nodding slowly in affirmation at the question regarding his name. After all, he did suppose that he was Lea now. He wasn't Axel anymore because he had a heart, right? To confirm that last thought, he brought a hand to his chest and found comfort in the slow thrumming of his heart.

"Yeah, I'm Lea. Got it memorized?" His and Axel's catchphrase had slipped out solely by habit. It was beside the point, though. He was pretty sure that the girl had introduced herself, but he had missed her name.

He voiced out his question, to receive a slightly annoyed twitch from the girl before she proudly stomped a boot covered foot on his bed and with arms akimbo, proudly declared that she was the "Great Ninja Yuffie."

"So… Yuffie?"

The girl pouted and removed her foot from the bed before crossing her wristband wearing arms over the unzipped, dark grey vest she wore atop a floral patterned navy blue top. "No..." she muttered. "It's _Great Ninja_ Yuffie."

"Yuffie."

Lea didn't know why, but he enjoyed seeing the pout on the girl's face. It had been so long since he had last annoyed someone and had fun doing it. As a Nobody, he had no heart, which meant that he couldn't gain any satisfaction from seeing the pissed off visage of whoever he was antagonizing.

However, he needed some answers from the girl, and he figured that the best way to get them was to comply with her wishes.

He sighed and threw his arms up in defeat before correcting himself. "Okay, Great Ninja Yuffie. Do you mind telling me why we're here?"

The black haired girl smiled brightly at the usage of her preferred name and, upon deciding that there was no way the redhead could be a threat to the Radiant Gardens (his "battle" against the Shadows was definitely taken into consideration), she seated herself comfortably on an empty spot on Lea's mattress and broke into a large explanation of the situation.

Lea anticipated a very detailed list of events from the talkative girl, so he rested his back against the headboard of the bed and listened intently as the girl spoke.

"I found you two on an alleyway somewhere near the Bailey, and saw that Blue was unconscious and you were trying to fight off a bunch of Shadows. No offense, but you were doing pretty badly. Maybe you could ask Merlin to teach you something other than level one fire spells? So anyways, you two were in the alley and..."

Being the slightly competitive idiot that he was, Lea _was_ slightly offended by Yuffie's recount of things and made a mental note to find out who this "Merlin" was and request for some help with his magic before his attention settled back on the girl.

"…and then I introduced myself and you fainted and then I lugged you two all the way to the medical wings here. Then you woke up and 'zo left for dinner and Blue's _still_ asleep."

Even with all of his attention focused on what she was saying, Lea barely managed to catch half of her story. He was sure that he had gotten the gist of it, so he returned to the more pressing matter on hand.

"Why'd you save us?" She wasn't planning on boiling the two in a pot of stew, was she?

"Why not?" she countered with her own question. The friendly glint was still found in her amethyst orbs, but her tone of voice had turned a lot more serious. "I can't just leave someone to become a Heartless. I just want to see our world rebuilt." The self-proclaimed ninja mumbled the last few words and had a brooding look on her face.

Lea didn't want to interrupt her reminiscing session, but her answer had brought up a very interesting point. "Which world it this?"

The girl's expression changed into one of slight shock. Yuffie had sort of been expecting that the boy had been to other worlds before judging by the fact that she had never seen him before.

"Radiant Gardens."

Now it was the redhead's turn to be shocked. He and Isa had somehow been returned to their home world! Things were happening too quickly for Lea's brain to fully comprehend. His thinking process immediately went into overdrive and he didn't even realize what he was doing unconsciously.

Lea made to rise from his bed, only to be quickly pushed back down by Yuffie who was confused by the odd behavior of the redhead but knew at the same time that he needed to rest.

"Is something wrong?" the black haired girl worriedly asked after Lea seemed to have regained his senses.

"No, it's..." Lea slowly began before changing what he was going to say."You're rebuilding this world at the moment?" he blurted out. "Can I…help?"

Yuffie's worried expression was immediately replaced by one of joy. "Of course!" she immediately replied.

Sure, she had just met the redhead and had only talked to him for about fifteen minutes, but she was quite certain that Radiant Gardens held some meaning to Lea, if his strange reaction at the mention of the place was anything to go by. Anyways, he seemed to be a friendly, but lost, person in their world, so it was helpful for her to give him a job, right?

"But for now, I'll leave you so you can rest up!"

Lea didn't have much time to reply to that statement. By the time he had processed the fact that Yuffie had accepted his request, she had walked to the doors.

The black haired ninja girl paused before crossing the glass entryway and turned around to face him, smiling brightly.

"Before I forget… Would you like some dinner?"

It wasn't until Yuffie had left that Lea realized that he hadn't told the silvery-blue haired boy his name.

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ACQUAINTING-END

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**Thank you for reading, and thanks to all reviewers!**

**Characterization was a difficult task for me when I wrote this chapter. For Ienzo, I purposely made his thoughts nothing like his outward character because it was more fun that way (okay, truth be told, I'm pretty sure his thoughts are creepier than what I wrote, but…). Yuffie was just… difficult. I tried to make her perky and friendly without being overly stupid and trusting. **

**Also, here's a question. Do people normally think in present or past tense? I think in both tenses, so I'm not really sure. So… if the fact that I write the characters' thoughts in past tense is odd, please tell me. OTL**

**The next chapter will come out… eventually. School is taking up the majority of my writing time. I'm very sorry.**

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**Next chapter:**

_"Who are you?"_


	4. Habituating

xXxXx

* * *

A flame flickered briefly in the palm of his hand before dying out.

"That was pathetic, Lea. Again."

Lea gritted his teeth as he fought the urge to give a painful third degree burn to the bored looking lab coat wearing silver-blue haired boy who had spoken.

"We've been at this for three hours."

The only reply the redhead received was the raise of the visible eyebrow. Lea tried again.

"I'm tired, damn it!" That, and the chilling weather did nothing to help his magic.

Again, he received no verbal response.

"You can hardly expect me to be a master at this immediately, like Axel!"

Lea realized his mistake the moment his Nobody's name left his lips.

The silver-blue haired boy's mood had grown visibly darker; his face was as impassive and controlled as ever save for the piercing blue orb that wasn't hidden by silvery bangs and was now colder than usual.

"Why, Lea," he practically trilled, "I was under the distinct impression that you were perfectly capable of handling 'such an amateur task as casting ten rounds of _level one_ fire spells in the_ rain_.' It appears that you have proven me wrong."

Oh why oh why did Lea boast about his fire spell casting skills earlier, especially in _Ienzo's_ presence? The silver-blue haired boy had always been exceptional at twisting around the words of others, and he still had residing memories of his Nobody days, including the time when Axel had ordered the Riku Replica to finish off Zexion in his weakened state, which meant that Ienzo probably had a grudge against Lea. Well, no. Ienzo had already demonstrated his vengeful state of mind the moment Lea had woken up choking and sputtering on a mouthful of bitter liquid. Lea had wondered just who the silver-blue haired boy was before noticing the startling resemblance between him and a certain Nobody he had assassinated.

Damn it. Just why the hell was he training his magic with someone who obviously wanted him dead? Oh, yeah, it was because he couldn't reject the extremely cheerful proposal of Yuffie's for Ienzo to teach him magic. Well, he had _tried_ to back out of it. It was just that he was still groggy from waking up at the crack of dawn, and Yuffie wouldn't take no for an answer, finishing the entire argument with a guilt trip.

"Weren't you going to help rebuild Radiant Gardens?" she had said wearing her best defeated puppy look. "If you can't defend yourself from the Heartless, then it will be difficult for you to assist us."

So here he was now, in a spacious turf near the impressive looking hospital Isa was currently resting in, pitifully attempting to cast basic fire spells in the wintry chill of the air and under the close scrutiny of his would-be killer. No, Lea was not having fun. In fact, he almost wished that Isa would wake up so that Ienzo could have another target to lock on, because earlier in the hospital, the silver-blue haired boy had shown small signs of hostility towards the bluenette. As it was, Isa had shown no signs of awakening any time soon, and Lea was on his own to suffer.

Fun.

In an attempt to wipe the chilly smile off of Ienzo's face, Lea summoned all of his reserve energy and threw it into one attack.

The redhead could only watch in dismay as his attempt failed miserably, the flame glowing dimly in his hand before extinguishing.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"How was-?"

"Don't. Please don't," Lea curtly cut off Yuffie's good-natured question and slumped into the empty chair next to the ninja, infuriated and exhausted by the earlier events.

After his fatal mistake of mentioning Axel's name, Ienzo had worked Lea like a dog for several hours straight, uncaring of the fact that Lea was simply _too tired_ and _out of mana_ to cast any spells at all. The redhead's frustration had grown until, his caution around angering Ienzo had been forgotten and he had burst out, "If you're such an _expert_ on magic spells, then why don't you _demonstrate_ them to me instead of just _standing_ there looking like a _statue_?"

At that demand, Ienzo had stated that he was expected to return to his duties as a medic and that Yuffie was expecting Lea to eat lunch with her.

Then again, it had all been Ienzo's fault that Lea was so angry. The redhead immediately felt guilty for snapping at the black haired ninja and apologized.

Yuffie pouted like a kicked puppy for a second before cheerfully waving off the apology and finishing her earlier question. This immediately caused Lea to begin ranting.

"He's terrible! He's trying to kill me! He's..."

Aside from the small amount of entertainment that she gained from prying into others' businesses, the ninja was almost sorry that she had asked.

Still, she was both disappointed and relieved that the two males didn't get along. She was hoping that Lea would settle in, but at the same time, she had her suspicions of Lea. Did he used to be what Ienzo and those others were? If so, would they band together to destroy their world a second time?

The black haired girl shook off her thoughts. Lea couldn't be a bad person. She had gotten to known him a little, and he seemed fine. Plus, Ienzo and his friends had reassured her that he wouldn't try to damage the Gardens because he already had his heart back, and what would he gain from sabotaging his former and current home?

Whatever. Yuffie would just have to trust the redhead for now.

Once she was sure that Lea would probably never end his tirade, she tossed him a sandwich to shut him up.

Not expecting an interruption to his raving, Lea was hit in the face by the soft projectile that flew at him, recovering just fast enough to catch the plastic wrapped package with his hands (it would have fallen onto his lap anyway).

He nodded gratefully and unwrapped the sandwich to take a bite, quickly pacified by the food. He _was_ very hungry, now that he had stopped ranting and could think about it, and the sandwich- peanut butter and jelly- was mouthwatering.

"Dudouyathedith?"

Yuffie stared at Lea's bulging mouth in horror and re-wrapped her half finished tuna sandwich, appetite destroyed. She thought that she was used to overstuffed mouths, what with Cid being a messy eater and all, but Lea had just broken the world's record for chewing on much too much food at once.

"Um…what?" she had no clue what the redhead had said.

Lea finished gulping down the rest of the sandwich. "Did you make this?" he gestured at the now-useless plastic wrap balled up in his fist.

"Ah, no," Yuffie smiled. "It was actually Aerith who made them. She's usually really busy, so I feel kind of guilty that she goes out of her way to make us these, but… Hey, I know!" a brilliant flash of inspiration struck the ninja like a lightning bolt. "You haven't met any of the others yet, have you?"

Lea shook his head in reply.

"Great! I have some free time this afternoon, so I can show you around this place more, then!" Yuffie hopped out of her chair excitedly. "I mean, Ienzo's back to helping out in the medical wards, so you have some spare time, too! Right? Right?" She didn't wait for a reply." Okay, let's go!"

One hand still clutching her partially finished sandwich, Yuffie raced off, dragging Lea behind her.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Hey, Squall!" Yuffie sprinted towards the turned back of a brunette man with a lean yet well-built frame who was currently brandishing a giant blade as if he had just been in a battle.

The man turned around to reveal a diagonal scar running across his forehead, as well as a pair of blue eyes that held exasperation in them.

"It's Leon."

The man- Squall or Leon- appeared to be used to Yuffie's antics and seemed almost amused by them.

"He's a childhood friend," Yuffie explained to the confused redhead beside her. "His name's Squall-"

"Leon," as the brunette corrected her, he turned his eyes on Lea, regarding the redhead warily. Lea noticed the glare and made a mental note to call the man whatever he wished to be called, because he didn't want to even imagine being on the wrong end of the sword-thingy the brunette was currently holding.

"-and he's the leader of the Restoration Committee!"

"The what?"

"The committee for restoring Radiant Gardens back to normal," the ninja said to Lea.

"Oh." Lea couldn't think of anything smarter to say.

"So anyways, this is Lea, Squall!" Yuffie introduced the redhead. Leon didn't bother to correct her. "He's going to help the Committee!"

An awkward silence reigned on within the trio. Lea could barely hide his desire to get as far away as possible from the watchful eye and shard blade of the silent swordsman while Yuffie was temporarily out of things to say. The redhead almost sighed in relief when the ninja decided that they should continue on their tour and left the brunette to his work.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Thank you very much," Lea smiled gratefully at the graceful woman clothed in pink as she handed him a bowl of soup. If there was something that the redhead had learned from his Nobody days, it was how to charm people into siding with him. Axel had been on many recon missions, and when he had been seen, which had been rarely because he had been a highly skilled assassin and assassins simply weren't easily spotted, he had usually managed to convince the unfortunate witness to forget that they had ever seen him. So, yes, getting on good graces of one of the prominent members of the Committee- which Lea had learned earlier as being one of the most influential groups in the Gardens- was pretty high up there on his current list. After all, who knew when Ienzo or some of his ex-Nobody friends would gang up on Lea in some sort of revenge?

Yes, Ienzo and _his ex-Nobody friends_. After Yuffie had introduced Lea to some other Committee members, such as Cid and Merlin, she had led him back to the hospital and acquainted the redhead with some of the staff there, including a woman named Aerith, who was the head of the wards and in charge of cooking meals. This had all been fine and good; he had learned the names of some new people and checked up on Isa to find that the bluenette was _still_ asleep. Then, the crowning moment of doom had presented itself in the forms of an apathetic silver-blue haired boy in a white lab coat and an even more familiar looking irritated blond man with extremely long hair.

It had been terrible. Yuffie had been with him, but that hardly assuaged the feeling of guilt and fear that had hit him like a sledgehammer with the appearance of the person that he had personally killed. Or rather, the appearance of the Somebody of the Nobody he had been ordered to assassinate as a Nobody and had pulled off with ease had caused him to feel the remorse and wariness that Axel had never felt.

After having known the blond man's Nobody, Lea had expected Vexen's Somebody to attack him with a giant ice shield or something. As it was, the blond had glared at him and Ienzo had drilled his eyes into Lea's green ones when the two pairs had met each other.

Yuffie had then introduced- well, more or less re-introduced- everyone in an attempt to mend the chilly atmosphere that had been forming between the three males.

An awkward moment had then settled among the four, even more uncomfortable than the one that had occurred with the meeting with Leon.

Yuffie had eventually dragged Lea away from the icy pair, but not before she had mentioned that Aeleus was taking care of some Heartless that had wandered dangerously close to the Borough.

_Aeleus_. Being a former member of the Organization, name anagrams were easily noticed by Lea because all of the Nobodies' names had been derived from their Somebody's with an "x" thrown somewhere into the mix. He had almost immediately rearranged the name to form "Lexaeus," which had been the identity of the fifth Nobody in the Organization.

Lea gulped down his soup in agitation. It was bad enough that two scientists were probably after his blood, but why did an extremely muscular guy who wielded something that resembled a tomahawk (or used to as a Nobody, anyways) have to be, too? The redhead was almost sure that the brunette ex-Nobody was Ienzo and Even's friend and would probably assist in their quest for revenge.

Maybe he was being too paranoid. Ienzo had hardly made any moves to harm him so far, aside from working him relentlessly in magic training and waking him up through a terrible method involving dumping potions into his mouth, while Even hadn't done anything aside from glare evilly at him.

Hopefully, the they would just leave him and Isa alone. He doubted it.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

The next few days had become something of a ritual. Lea had memorized his schedule. Wake up at the crack of dawn. Eat breakfast. Get tortured (also known as magic training with Ienzo, although Lea had to grudgingly admit that he was getting better at spell casting; he could cast _Fira_ now). Eat lunch. More training or assisting Ienzo and Even in the hospital (this was becoming an increasingly uncomfortable task and the redhead was sure that their unvoiced truce would soon be broken). Eat dinner. Assist Yuffie or some other Committee member in getting rid of Heartless. Sleep.

In between everything, Lea would always check on Isa to see if he was awake yet. The bluenette never was.

It wasn't that there was an abnormality causing Isa to stay in a coma-like state. Aerith had scanned him with magic and had kindly told Lea that his friend was fine. Even Ienzo had checked, although his way of communicating results to the redhead was accompanied with a sharp and clipped voice.

It was getting ridiculous. Lea couldn't help but childishly blame Isa for not waking up.

With each passing day, Lea grew more and more used to the emotions that he now felt. He was becoming less Axel and more Lea. He wasn't wary of Isa anymore, because they were friends, and any bad blood Axel had with Saix was overwritten. Yes, Lea's sense of logic was terrible. He didn't mind, putting his energy into worrying for his friend instead.

"Wake up, Isa," Lea commanded to the comatose figure sleeping soundlessly in the bed, unaware and undisturbed by the redhead's presence. Lea currently had some free time from helping out in the medical wards, so what a better way to spend it than to check up on his friend? "Wake up."

Lea didn't care about how futile his request was. He didn't think he could last another day being lonely. Yuffie and everyone else who was even remotely friendly to him were always busy. Ienzo and Even were distant and slightly hostile. It was driving Lea nuts. He had always been an attention seeker, and Isa had always lavished the redhead with attention, albeit in a sarcastic manner and with forced reluctance.

"_Wake up_, Isa."

Lea knelt next to Isa's bed and tiredly slumped his arms and head onto the white covers blanketing the bluenette's body.

"Wake up..." he muttered, voice muffled by the sheets.

At this, the redhead felt Isa's body shifting underneath him. Lea brightened considerably and raised his head hopefully to look at his friend.

"Isa?"

His gaze faltered. Isa's eyes were _golden_. That wasn't possible. Isa's eyes were supposed to be _green_. Green. Not gold. Gold was the colors of _Saix's_ eyes.

It wasn't the color that had made Lea freeze. It was the fact that Isa's eyes were blank, devoid of any emotions or signs of recognition for the redhead.

The former Luna Diviner continued to lie in bed unresponsively. Then his mouth opened to form the words that lodged themselves in Lea's brain to shatter any remaining bits of hope he ever had.

"Who are you?"

* * *

HABITUATING-END

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**I enjoy seeing Ienzo torture Lea. Clearly, I have problems. Quite honestly though, I never was too fond of Axel (he looked _extremely _evil in the original trailer for KHII, which was a giant... turnoff). Lea redeemed the redhead for me. But I digress.**

**This chapter took quite a long time to write, school not taken into consideration. I kept deleting and rewriting certain parts of it. For some reason, I just couldn't come up with the words to describe some scenes. Also, I think my chapters are getting progressively shorter. I apologize for this. The next chapter will be longer, hopefully.  
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**I thank all the readers of this fic for patiently waiting for an update. I hope to find more time to write. Special thanks goes to those who reviewed this story. **

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**Next Chapter:**

_"Your name's Isa."_**  
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	5. Forgetting

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_He was fully aware that he wasn't conscious._

_Nothing but darkness surrounded him. He couldn't see, couldn't breathe, couldn't physically feel…_

_But he existed. _

_It was cold. He neither disliked nor enjoyed the feeling. It was a familiar, terrible sensation that slowly but surely numbed its way into his heart. His heart?_

_He wasn't sure why simply the thought of the organ made him feel..._

_...empty?_

_Was it because… He was lost? Doubtful and unsure of who he was?_

_**"...Isa."**_

_Random sounds somehow found their way to him in the realm of oblivion._

_The voice was familiar. The name was..._

_**"Wake up."**_

_Who was it again?_

_**"Wake **_**up**_**."**_

_Who?_

_**"Wake up, Isa."**_

_He should listen, shouldn't he?_

_**Yes**__, because he trusted the speaker. He didn't know why, but…_

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

He felt his consciousness returning to him gradually, like iron being drawn to a magnet, only not quite as easily. There was a dense fog of haziness that whispered sweet, poisonous nothings of returning to that blissful oblivion he was in.

He would always obey his subconscious. Why leave the peace of mind he had achieved through rest? It was almost as if he were terrified to return to the world of living.

One day, a nagging feeling at the back of his head sharply snapped at him to wake the hell up in a very familiar tone. Something in him responded to the imagined demand, and he found himself swimming at the near brink of consciousness.

When enough of him had gathered together to form a coherent thought, he slowly parted his eyelids, allowing a piercing light to filter through them.

Where was he? That was his first thought once his eyes had adjusted to the artificial lighting coming from overhead.

He stared emptily at the blank ceiling above him, racking his mind for any information about himself. Nothing. He didn't know who he was. He would panic, but what was the point? None.

He then noticed a weight being lifted from his body and the distinct presence of something hovering above him. His eyes trailed away from the ceiling and met with a shock of red. Crimson, spiky hair that stuck upward like a porcupine. Brilliant green orbs that shone with hope and light that were quickly replaced by confusion. A childish face that neared adulthood while still retaining some puppy fat. An orange, checkered and stripped bandanna that hung loosely around the neck…

Somehow, the mental list he made of the person in front of him didn't fit. Wasn't the- boy? Teenager?- wasn't he supposed to look much older and taller? The hair was supposed to be longer, although still spiky. He shouldn't be wearing the bandanna or that orange vest. No. He-

And where were his tattoos? Two, black upside down teardrops that distinctly marked the area just underneath his eyes. Where were they?

More importantly, from where did this sudden train of thought come from? He felt something nudging at the corner of his mind that wanted to surface and make him understand what he was thinking.

Suddenly, he needed to know. He wanted to know. His lips parted almost mechanically and a voice that both was and was not his own spoke.

"Who are you?"

Something in the redhead seemed to have snapped. Before he knew what was happening, a hand gripped each of his shoulders and yanked him into a sitting position before shaking him none too gently.

"Are you joking with me, Isa?"

Why was he being yelled at? What had he done? He simply wanted to know who his companion was. Or better yet, why was he being addressed with such a feminine name?

"Who's…Isa?"

The spiky haired teenager desisted in his violent actions and retreated away from the bed he was lying in until he crashed into a bed behind him. His emerald eyes dulled in their brilliance and widened with shock as s conclusion was reached.

"You aren't joking."

He almost wanted to snort at the statement. Was he supposed to be joking?

"You really don't remember?" the redhead hesitantly prompted, almost as if he didn't wish to hear the answer.

"Remember?" he wasn't sure how to reply. "Not to be insensitive, but do I know you? Or, better yet, who am I?"

Spiky locks of crimson fell forward to conceal green orbs filled with shock before the redhead, trembling with unconcealed emotions, stormed out of the room via a set of automatic glass doors.

What was that all about? Had he been overly insensitive? He frowned. He still didn't know his name, or the name of his former companion either.

He pushed himself up to a more comfortable sitting position and absentmindedly played with the covers of the bed he was lying on. Now that he had time to himself to think, he realized that the room he was in looked quite familiar. The strange pieces of machinery that were set in an orderly fashion around the vicinity and the cabinet of what appeared to be a huge stock of potions led him to believe that he was in what was called a hos- what was it again?- ah, yes, a _hospital_. Not to mention the smell. The disturbingly sterile smell was unmistakable for that of any others.

If he was in a hospital, then the teenager who was in here earlier might have been a worker, although he highly doubted it, because he was outfitted in clothing more suitable for a visitor. Which meant that the redhead had been checking up on him. Which meant that they were supposed to know each other. Which meant that-

Ah. Maybe that was the problem? Maybe they _had_ known each other. The redhead certainly acted like they did. Shoot. He probably had just destroyed his only chance of knowing who he was.

He was in quite the predicament, wasn't he? Maybe he should have been more tactful? But really, his mouth had gone off on its own, if that was possible, because he hardly had any control of them. Or he _did_, but…

Anyways, he wouldn't be getting any answers by lying there like an invalid. Just as he was considering leaving the room in search of some actual answers, the glass doors slid open for a second time, this time revealing a short, silvery-blue haired boy wearing a pristine, white lab coat that easily reached below his knees who calmly strode over to his bed.

"I was wondering what the fuss was about. So you are awake, Isa." The last statement was voiced almost as a question.

He chose to ignore the observations of the boy and asked the question he longed to find an answer to.

"Who am I?"

A quirk of a slim silver eyebrow was all that he received in reply, the other being concealed beneath a mass of silvery-blue bangs. The action seemed almost as if it were a silent question asking whether he had been serious in his inquiry.

"I…Please tell me who I am."

"Most people remember their names, even after forgetting everything else."

"I don't."

A silent stare-off commenced, until the silver-blue haired boy sighed and gave in. "Isa. Your name is Isa."

_Isa._ The name was both familiar and foreign to him. It did explain why the redhead had addressed him as such, however.

"And your name? Do I know you?"

"You_ did_ know me." The emphasis on the past tense was unmistakable. "However, I believe that you should chase after the person who used to be your best friend. He ran out of here nearly…_crying_," the last part was said with something different from the look of boredom that the boy constantly gave off. Instead, something akin to pity lurked behind the navy blue iris unconcealed by long fringes of silver-blue.

The newly named Isa was unsure about listening to the boy's suggestions, but he was desperate to find out more about himself and the doctor or whatever the boy was seemed reluctant to tell him anything more. Isa cautiously climbed out of his bed after the boy assured him that he was physically in great condition, save for the possible feeling of weakness that came with hunger and being cooped up in bed for days, and wobbled feebly once he was standing. The boy's warning had been quite accurate- Isa's legs felt weak and rubbery from inactiveness. He felt himself take a careful step forward, and then another…

Soon, he stumbled his way to the glass doors, the boy watching him disinterestedly without making a move to help steady him. Before he left the room, he remembered that the boy had not yet told him his name and he did not know the redhead's identity either.

"I am Ienzo. His name is Lea," the boy who revealed himself to be Ienzo spoke before the question had left his lips. "The people around here are all willing to help you find your way, should you get lost."

_Lea. Lea. Lea._

It was a familiar name, more so than "Ienzo" was. With that as the pounding mantra in his head, Isa limped around aimlessly, unsure of where to begin his search. From the way the redhead had left the infirmary ward, it looked as if Lea had been unsure of where to go, but had to just _run somewhere. _

Maybe he really _had_ upset the him. From what little information he received from Ienzo, Isa was led to the belief that he and the redhead had been tightly knit friends. More than likely, Lea was the person to go to for more light on his past.

That was _if_ he could actually find him. Currently, Isa felt nothing more than the groaning complaints of his nearly non-existent muscles from being malnourished and disused. He had somehow found the energy to jog out of the hospital (which was quite a big place, more so because it was combined with some other facilities that weren't medical-related) receiving more than a few stares for being an unfamiliar face running around the building, but after he left the front entrance, he was utterly at a loss.

He was currently staring at a huge expanse of turf as he contemplated just what the hell he was supposed to do. The obvious choice would have been to get some food because his entire body was begging for it, but he had no idea where to get it (and even if he did, it wasn't like he had any money, because he had thumbed through his pant pockets looking for more clues of his life and found nothing but lint) and was also starved for information. He felt lost and he wanted… He supposed that he wanted to understand more about himself.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Lea slumped down to the ground, unsure of what to think. Was he supposed to be happy or sad?

His best friend didn't remember him. His best friend didn't…

Then again, was Isa really his best friend? Isa and Lea had been dead for ten years. Ten whole years in which their Nobodies had grown farther and farther apart. But Saix wasn't Isa, and Axel wasn't Lea, so were the Somebodies still considered as friends even when the Nobodies weren't?

No. Yes. Either way, it didn't change the fact that Isa didn't remember him.

On the other hand, Lea had wished for Isa to not remember anything from his Nobody days. As high as self-preservation was on his list, Lea's real motivation behind the wish was for Isa's innocence to not be tainted with the stains of murder. Saix was nothing like Isa, and Isa should not have to suffer the repercussions of his Nobody's actions.

Unfortunately for Lea, all of Isa's memories, not just the ones pertaining to his days as a Nobody, were gone. Everything. Every prank they had played on the citizens, every time they had ate sea salt ice cream together… To the bluenette, it was all as if they had never happened.

It was unfair. It was completely unfair that Lea had his friend back, but without his memories, could they ever be as tight as brothers again?

Damn it all. Lea clutched his crimson spikes in a show of frustration, glaring at the canopy of leaves that hid the sky. Damn it. Just why did the deities hate the two of them so? First they were killed off, then their bodies and souls were left in an emotionless state for ten years, and then after they regained a heart and were sent back to their homes, one of them didn't remember anything! Why, why, why-

Lea stopped his thoughts mid-rant and jumped, noticing that he didn't recognize his current surroundings. Well, it wasn't completely unfamiliar. There were trees as far as his eyes could see, which meant that he was probably in the …

He was lost. Great. The gods must have really wanted to screw with him today. Damn it. God fu-

"You're lost."

The statement was short and spoken in a monotone that he'd recognize anywhere. Of all the people that had to witness him in his emo-angsting glory, it just _had_ to be the silent, manipulative bastard who was probably here to laugh at his misery.

Lea snapped. He whirled around and faced the speaker, who was currently leaning against a tree trunk and observing the redhead with a guarded expression. "What's it to you? What do you care? Why don't you just let me die out here? That's what you'd want, anyways! Don't deny it! I killed you! Of course you'd want… y-you'd want..."

He didn't understand why he was crying. Worse, he was breaking down into tears in front of his mortal enemy. Or whatever Ienzo was. Damn it! He must have been more affected by Isa's memory loss than he initially expected. He didn't know what the hell he was supposed to be thinking, what to-

"It's understandable that you feel the pain of loss," Ienzo ignored Lea's outburst completely. "Even though it has been many years, the residual feelings and memories, however faded they are, of who you were before as opposed to who you are now are confusing your current thoughts and actions. Furthermore-" he appeared to hesitate before stating the next part, " I do believe that I should thank your Nobody for getting rid of mine."

What? The redhead stared with his quickly drying tear-stained face confusedly at the lab coat wearing boy. Why couldn't he ever speak in a simple, to the point statement? Although from what little bit of information Lea could garner, Ienzo didn't hold a grudge against him anymore?

The boy sighed as if Lea was a stupid moron and flatly said, "I do not wish to _kill_ you. Why don't you sort out your feelings and find your amnesic friend. Eat ice cream together or something and see if that brings up any memories." His work finished, Ienzo left the shelter of the tree he was leaning against and allowed Lea to proceed with life.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"So you see, one of the guards ended up throwing us out, but we managed to sneak into the castle undetected for the most part!"

Ienzo resisted the urge to roll his eyes, knowing it was uncharacteristic of him to give in to such a childish impulse. Instead, he calmly whacked the animated redhead over the head with a thousand page dictionary and ordered him to cast another level three fire spell.

Lea pouted immaturely at the interruption in the retelling of his many adventures with Isa to the bluenette in question and proceeded to quickly do as Ienzo had requested, a fiercely roaring but controlled flame cupped in the palm of his hand.

Ienzo admitted to himself that even he was slightly impressed by the redhead's progress in magic thus far. It had only been two weeks since he was forced to train the dunderhead in the finer workings of spell-casting, and already Lea could produce several higher level spells. He supposed that the rapid improvement was brought out by Lea's amnesic acquaintance, who was currently staring curiously at Lea with just the tiniest bits of awe and wonder.

The assistant healer was glad that Lea had seemingly taken the words he had spoken to him on the day Isa woke up to heart, and instead of wallowing in self-pity and confusion, had decided to help his friend remember some things about himself. The redhead had taken to following the bluenette around everywhere, essentially becoming a tour guide, because Isa often asked questions about certain things he had forgotten about, such as the name of a commonly used object or a specific location. He had even introduced sea salt ice cream, gratefully accepting two bars from the ever generous duck, Uncle Scrooge and offering them to the quiet bluenette.

Overall, Ienzo had to say that he was pleased with Lea's progress, even if the Neanderthal showed all signs of having forgotten that they were ever friends, or put more accurately, acquaintances that fraternized and ate ice cream on rare days. The redhead still seemed to think that Ienzo held a grudge against him for killing his Nobody, which was true, considering that the silver-blue haired boy enjoyed inflicting pain upon the brat under his tutelage quite often. Perhaps he hadn't fully gotten over the assassination.

Regardless, the fact remained that Lea was happy for the most part, and… Sometimes Ienzo felt as if he were the redhead's father, watching over the brat no matter how unwillingly. It was quite strange, really. Maybe he was bored, which was why he was thinking random things. He almost wished that Aeleus would come back from his duties of guarding the borders of the residential area so that he would have someone other than a constantly sulking old man (Even) to have an intelligent discussion with (not to say that Aerith or one of the other, more mature members couldn't provide him company- they did- but he was most comfortable with his old acquaintances).

Come to think of it, it was slightly bothersome that there was a need for extra fighters near the city borders. He_ had_ heard that there were more Heartless sighted around than normal lately, but…

He needed to analyze the situation later. For now, he was to assist the Committee in training back-up in case the Heartless numbers ever amassed to larger amount.

"Isa, please show me your cure spell again," he quietly commanded.

The bluenette did as asked and succeeded with little trouble. A tiny orb of healing light appeared and vanished, leaving the skin where the angry red imprint left by Ienzo's abuse of the dictionary was completely restored.

Lea sighed in relief and gingerly touched his forehead, beaming when he found that it didn't sting anymore. "Thanks, Isa! You know, let me tell you about the one time when-"

Ienzo coolly brought down the monster book on Lea's head for the second time that day. "I do believe we are in need of another cure spell. Isa, if you would please..."

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FORGETTING-END

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**Thank you so much to all the readers who have stuck with me so far. I'm very grateful that you put up with my slow updating schedule.I have the entire of this story planned out, but when it comes to writing it, I often draw blanks.**

**Oh yes, next month is NaNoWriMo, so I will probably be busy working on writing that. There probably will not be an update for another few again, I thank you all for reading and bearing with me.**

**EDIT: Thanks to Light Within Darkness for pointing out that the iris is the colored part of the eye and not the pupil. I have changed this detail accordingly. **

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**Next Chapter:**

_"Put bluntly, the situation is quite worrisome."_**  
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	6. Troubling

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Aeleus dodged a ferocious swipe from a Shadow just in time for his companion to put a bullet through the accursed monster. Now that the threat had been taken care of, Aeleus paused in his endeavors and irritably brushed back a stray lock of auburn hair that was hanging in front of his eyes. He was trying not to collapse on the hard pavement in exhaustion. Although none of his tiredness showed on his face, a flask of green liquid was tossed at him anyways, courtesy of the silent companion who had temporarily banished the Heartless.

_Leon_. Aeleus caught the flask easily and uncorked it, gratefully drinking the contents and feeling much more refreshed with the help of the potion. But still, he was tired.

Aeleus, a sturdy, six foot tall giant with rippling muscles and in addition to being one of the most physically strong person in the world had an unrivaled skill in wielding a tomahawk, was exhausted. He had been fighting Heartless near the Radiant Garden civilization borders in _broad daylight_ for several hours straight. He had begun his guard patrol duties since the crack of dawn; now the sun was overhead, brutally beating down on his tanned skin. But no, the heat was not a problem, even though he stopped now to wipe sweat from his forehead and neck. It was not the heat.

It was the Heartless.

They had been coming in droves lately, threatening the city borders more and more often. It was all the giant brunette could do to eliminate them before they could attack the people of Radiant Gardens, and even his companion, the war-hardened Leon with his lithe, muscular frame and quick strategies, was facing difficulties.

The smaller, darker haired man had finished drinking his own potion bottle, and yet Aeleus noted the various unhealed battle marks that covered his body; cuts angrily welting on exposed skin and torn leather clothing slashed almost fashionably here and there. Leon's wary blue eyes slowly scanned their surroundings as he absentmindedly cleaned his gunblade- a strange weapon that was shaped like a sword and could fire off bullets, thereby gaining it's name. Aeleus took his companion's lead and did the same, understanding full well that the two of them could not afford to risk getting ambushed by a mob of Heartless.

Aeleus had already had his heart stolen (clawed out) by one of those despised creatures of darkness, and he had no intention of repeating the ordeal. The time he spent as a Nobody was something that would forever haunt his nightmares, and although he did not show it, he was greatly affected by the decade of memories of not having feelings, emotions and… Yes, he did not wish to get his heart taken away again, not now that he miraculously recovered it.

It was precisely because he used to be a Nobody (not to mention the fact that a certain king had apparently left behind some incriminating evidence of the Somebody's involvement in the entire mess regarding the sudden surge of Heartless in the worlds) that when he had first woken up for the first time in ten years as a Somebody, unarmed and dressed in his old castle guard uniform, he had found himself in a random hospital room he had no recollection of ever being in surrounded by a protective barrier that would not allow him to freely move around when he tried to. A smiling brunette woman with emerald green eyes dressed in pink had then entered the room accompanied by a cold, dark-haired man in leather, and as Aeleus proceeded to stare in confusion at the strange duo while trying to recall just how he had come to be in this situation, the woman had walked over to him and had begun to question him.

Who he was, whether he was a Nobody or not- because he looked so much like a certain Somebody they had found in some old records. Aeleus had tried answering the questions to the best of his ability, his confusion slowly slipping away as he remembered more and more about himself. And then he had remembered that he had died. Twice. Or rather, his Somebody had his heart removed while the Nobody born from such an act had been slain by a silver haired youth. So how was he alive? And weren't the people that were questioning him very familiar, as if he had spied on them during a recon mission before…?

Then he had realized that he could feel- _he could feel, could feel, and he wasn't an emotionless being anymore and_- somehow, just somehow, the friendly woman, Aerith had noticed that he wasn't lying in his replies and had deemed that he was not a threat, thus removing the barrier shield, albeit with a sound of protest from her so-far silent companion.

But that had been then, and this was now. Leon had since then become acquainted with the muscular tomahawk wielder, and the two had been sent on countless scouting and fighting missions together. It was quite a difference, Aeleus mused after the two of them had their short break interrupted by a stray Shadow that had leaped at the alert gunblade wielder only to receive a death blow from a bullet, his current partner's fighting style and Dilan's.

Dilan had been a fellow scientist, a researcher of the heart, as well as Aeleus's partner in guarding the castle of Radiant Garden. The tall, black haired man with the large sideburns had been an adept lancer, as opposed to Leon's preference of gunblades. Dilan had also had his heart taken away when the Heartless came and also had a will strong enough for a Nobody to be born._ Xaldin_. But hadn't Xaldin died?

Aeleus was pretty sure that the lancer Nobody had faded away due to the fact that Isa had recently been found near an alleyway, along with Lea. Isa had been the Somebody of Saix, and since Saix was the second in command to the leader of the Organization, he would have been one of the last to be destroyed. Meaning that before the Keyblade Master managed to reach Saix, he would have had to go through the other Nobodies, including Xaldin. So where was Dilan? Shouldn't he be appearing sometimes soon in the Gardens, alive and filled with emotions again?

Understandably, some of the other Nobodies destroyed in action would most likely not be found in Radiant Gardens when (_if_) given their second chance, because according to Ienzo (his friend, the intelligent little boy- who'd probably kill him for thinking of him as such), the heart that they recovered would guide the Somebodies towards their homelands. That explained why the Somebodies of Numbers IX and above would not be found anytime soon, but Dilan should be here. And Braig, come to think of it. Same with Xehanort, although Aeleus was pretty certain that Xehanort wasn't like the rest of them, too immersed in darkness to return to the light.

Still, Aeleus thought in frustration as his tomahawk fended off a claw swipe from a Soldier Heartless that had almost taken him by surprise due to his musings, it would be quite helpful if Dilan or Braig were here, because as manipulative as Dilan was (but Ienzo was more so, so Aeleus really didn't care) and annoying as Braig was, the two were both excellent fighters, skilled with their choice weapons. Having the two of them would be most helpful in the sudden increase of Heartless attacks.

Grunting as a claw slashed his cheek in his carelessness, Aeleus wondered just where the hell the Keyblade Master was when he was needed and whether Ienzo would bash him over the skull with a monster sized textbook or not for returning scraped and battered.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Aeleus glared, his blue eyes almost shooting out electric dagger-like forces, while secretly resisting the almost unbearable impulse to blink and tear up.

Ienzo glared back, a heavy textbook of several hundred pages clutched firmly in his tiny hands.

The two proceeded to hold an unofficial glaring contest, sparks of challenge flying haywire in the vast, sterile, and thankfully empty environment of hospital beds and potions.

Aeleus eventually sighed and gave up after five minutes of holding back his need to cry, rubbing at his injured head in a futile attempt to soothe it. Damn it, the effects of the hit were really starting to rush in after the five minute delay; it was all Aeleus could do to not start begging for mercy as his attacker smirked in triumph. Wherever the hell had the frail looking boy before him learned to throw a monster book with such accuracy and power?

Ienzo tried to control his face, he really did, but the corners of his mouth just couldn't resist curving upward into a smirk. He took a moment to get his facial expression under control (because he was the apathetic and uncaring one, not the one who basked in childish triumphs) and when he finally did so, proceeded to force his giant friend to lie down on a bed before leaving to gather some materials from the cabinets nearby.

The silver-blue haired boy returned from his rummaging with a handful of antiseptics and bandages, an evil smirk threatening to reemerge on his face. Aeleus nearly groaned in horror and felt a strong impulse to run away, but that would be out of character. So the brunette schooled his expression into one of stoicism, laying immobile as disinfectant stung when applied to the multiple cuts and scrapes that decorated his body. He definitely _did not_ wince or squeal like a pig with it's tail on fire when Ienzo pressed a disinfectant covered cotton swab particularly hard on a tender area. He did not (and thank goodness that no one but the two were in the infirmary because then his reputation would be forever destroyed).

"This is why," the so-far silent boy began after finishing disinfecting the wounds and sat Aeleus on the mattress to wrap bandages around his left arm (which was worse off than the right one, the latter sporting only a few scratches whereas the former was plagued by a particularly nasty bruise), "You_ take a few potions with you_ when you_ patrol the borders_."

"I took several bottles with me, and Leon had some with him as well," Aeleus felt the need to defend himself. It wasn't his fault that there had been so many mobs of heartless appearing everywhere that day, and he could only shudder at the thought of how the gentle healer dressed in pink would react to seeing her dear friend Leon's injuries. Aerith would probably scold the gunblade wielder while unknowingly making him feel guilty for getting wounded.

Silence settled between the two friends and they basked in it, far too used to it to find anything but comfort and familiarity. Ienzo finished bandaging the rest of Aeleus's wounds and stood back to allow the brunette stretching space, before muttering, "There are more of them."

Aeleus understood what the boy meant, so he nodded. While he did not want to cause unnecessary worry for the one that he considered his true friend, he could not lie. The Heartless situation was growing out of control and needed fixing. And-

"Couldn't you have just casted a cure spell on me?"

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Thank you," Isa smiled and took the ice cream bar handed to him by the redhead. In almost perfect synchronicity, the two friends took a bite of the refreshing treat, only too grateful to have the sweet yet salty, cold yet not enough to cause a brain freeze, dessert melt in their mouths- they felt dead from hours of magic casting.

Ienzo had been in a particularly demanding mood today, forcing Isa to cast a series of twenty _Curas_ and expecting the same of Lea, except with _Firagas_. And while Lea had had to cast level three spells, which took much more effort than Isa's level twos, the fiery redhead had had a slight advantage over his friend, being that he had been much more accustomed to Ienzo's training methods and had had an affinity with the fire element. Regardless of these facts, the two were now utterly exhausted, having worked since the first glimpse of the rising sun. The boys sat with their legs dangling over the edge of the hospital's rooftop licking their ice cream and enjoying the beautiful sunset sky. While the hospital was a mere three-stories tall and was not by any means the tallest building in Radiant Gardens (the castle was, but it was still being rebuilt), it did provide an excellent view.

Isa tore his eyes temporarily from the dying orb and turned to his companion, who continued to gaze intently at the sunset, his emerald eyes growing distant.

The sunset was beautiful, Lea mused as he chewed off a chunk from the corner of his bar. He could remember the countless amount of times he (no, not him- _Axel_), Roxas and- had there been someone else?- had been like this. But he wasn't Axel, and he didn't feel sad that he could no longer eat ice cream with the spiky-haired blonde and- damn, just who was the other that they had hung out with? There was someone, someone…

Lea sighed with frustration. Why couldn't he remember? Axel had "friends," not just Roxas, but someone else as well. He was sure of it, but he couldn't…

"What's wrong?" Isa murmured, curiosity mingling into his unbroken gaze which Lea turned to meet.

"I can't remember," the redhead scowled at himself before tearing off another chunk of ice cream in annoyance.

Isa was silent; Lea belatedly realized that if anyone had the right to be frustrated with their memories, or lack thereof, it was his best friend. As much as Lea had spent the past few weeks since an amnesic Isa woke up telling him stories of their past to help him recover his memories, in an effort to preserve his friend's innocence and afraid of what would happen if Isa were to know about Saix, the redhead had left out certain key details including Isa's death and everything about his Nobody. And while Isa had swallowed up everything Lea told him, desperate for even a scrap that would help him know who he was, the redhead was almost sure that his friend was starting to suspect that his "best friend" wasn't telling him something.

Pulling himself out of those troubling thoughts, Lea realized that Isa was still staring at him in a disquieting way. Crap. He hoped that his statement hadn't made him angry.

"Uh, I mean-" here Lea stuttered, trying to save the situation before it all went under, "Today's training was terrible, wasn't it!" He winced at the noticeable increase in pitch near the end of his statement that resulted in his voice cracking, before smiling nervously like an idiot.

His blue-haired friend just raised a bemused eyebrow. "Indeed so," was all he said before playfully shoving the redhead (paying heed to the dangerous position they were currently in of course, sitting on the edge of the three story tall building) for behaving so weirdly.

Lea suddenly realized that the memories of eating ice cream with Isa in the days before the Heartless invasion (and now that he thought of it, Ienzo had joined them sometimes, too) were important to him, more important than the memories of eating ice cream with Roxas and the person he couldn't recall. Eating sea-salt ice cream with his blue-haired friend _now_ was even more so. He was _Lea_, not _Axel_.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Ignoring the searing hot pain that flashed across her left arm, Yuffie snarled and wrenched her giant shuriken free from the building it had impaled itself in, only too thankful to Lea for providing the short distraction she needed. When she finally pulled out her weapon, she quickly tossed it at the group of Soldiers that had the redhead surrounded. The Heartless recoiled from the attack and Lea seized the moment's advantage by casting a chain of three_ Firagas,_ which exploded on contact with the shadowy creatures.

The ninja clutched at her bleeding left arm and worriedly looked at the cloud of dust caused by the explosion, hoping that Lea hadn't managed to somehow kill himself with his own attack. The dim glow of the streetlights in the murky black of the night gave an eerie effect to the scene before her, making the anticipation even worse as she waited for something to emerge from the destruction. It was to her relief that when the dust cleared up, a familiar figure stood flashing a cocky grin and holding up a victory symbol with his fingers, no signs of any Heartless nearby.

"You're all right. Good."

Lea's smile vanished in alarm at the faintness of the ninja's voice- the absence of the normally hyper and speed talking side of the girl was only a hint at how dire the situation was. He ran forward and gasped when he saw the blood that coated his friend, and- holy- her arm-

He barely managed to catch the ninja when she collapsed from blood loss.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

Her pink lips were turned downward, worry visible within her emerald eyes. Running a frustrated hand through her soft, brown hair, Aerith gave her full attention to the injured ninja girl who had been rushed into the infirmary only moments ago by a hysterical redhead and was now lying on a hospital bed. Blood stained Yuffie's entire body, ruining her clothing, regardless of how dark the colors of her attire were. Her left arm gave the appearance of being split into two by a long, white scratch mark that tore deep into and spread across the entire length of the limb, most likely the work of a Heartless. It was terrible seeing the normally hyperactive teen like this, corpse-like, deceased,_ dead_.

How had this happened? Had Yuffie not been careful enough while on patrol? Was Lea all right? He had looked shaken up when he placed the ninja's immobile body gently on the bed and left.

"The Heartless..." she whispered as she concentrated on a high-level cure spell, her fingers trailing down Yuffie's injured arm gently. The effects of the magic were instant, the skin surrounding the terrible flesh wound the ninja had sustained began knitting together, until the large gash that had previously run across the length of her arm had disappeared completely, tiny traces of magic remaining on the now reddish, but patched up skin.

Satisfied that Yuffie was healed properly and feeling only slightly faint at the amount of magic she used, Aerith turned to her patiently waiting assistant, Ienzo, who had arrived earlier to tell her something of utmost importance only to have been interrupted by Lea's hasty entrance.

"Is something wrong?" she prompted when he made no move to speak.

"… Aeleus said that he was attacked by multiple Heartless while out on patrol," the boy reluctantly began. "According to him, the number of Heartless appearing near the borders has been growing steadily-" Aerith heard her breath hitch- "and it isn't just Emblem Heartless that have been appearing, so we cannot assume that this is the result of an active Heartless creating machine. Pure-bred Heartless just as common of an occurrence." Ienzo's eyes narrowed as he tapped his thumb to his chin in what was clearly his thinking pose, reminding Aerith of just how intelligent the boy was for his age.

It was a mark of just how serious circumstances were and how Ienzo felt about regaining his heart that he did not play with his words at all, saying everything that one of the more active members of the Restoration Committee would need to know to help rectify the situation.

"Put bluntly, the situation is quite worrisome."

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TROUBLING-END

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**Thank you for reading.**

**I have a feeling that there will be many errors in sentence structure and grammar in this chapter, as much as I have tried to fix them. Nanowrimo literally killed my inner editor. **

**I would like to clarify some things in this fic. **

**First of all, the ages. Since this story takes place immediately after the end of KH2, the original Restoration Committee members are the same ages as they were in that game. As for the Somebodies of the Nobodies, their ages are around the same as they were before having their hearts stolen. This means that Isa and Lea are teenagers and not as… old as Saix and Axel appear to be. The same goes for the other ex-Organization members.**

**Second, Aeleus's tomahawk (in case anyone plans on asking). It is not the same weapon as the Axe-Blade that Lexaeus wielded. It's just an ordinary tomahawk that one of the Committee members found in some random place (admittedly, a terrible explanation, but if I start getting into a deep explanation of everything that happens during the storyline of this fic, it will take a very long time to finish...).**

**Third, magic? Can the Somebodies use magic? It hasn't been canonically confirmed or denied, so I'm making Ienzo, Isa, and Lea magic users. Ehehe.**

**Fourth, while the characters in this fic do not have the complete grasp of why Organization members are given a second chance at life, the Nomura theory remains. Any wild speculations that the characters have are most likely... slightly off.  
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**Last, Xehanort. Putting him in this fic will make everything a lot more complicated, what with BBS and all. I'm just hoping that KH3D will tell us what happens to him. So… He most likely won't be seen in here, other than a few mentions. **

**I think that is all. If anything else is confusing, feel free to ask.**

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**Next chapter:**

_"Are you all right?"_**  
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	7. Speculating

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Lea didn't know where he was going until he found himself in front of the hospital, blankly staring at the massive structure. He could only recall brief flashes of what had happened in the panic and numbness he had felt with Yuffie's collapse. He marched through the automatic doors in an almost robotic way and blindly allowed his feet to lead him wherever- his body was on autopilot, without a proper thought to guide him. It was when he had finally set the ninja down on a bed that he felt the distinct lift of a heavy burden- no matter how light the girl was, he_ had_ carried her from the outskirts of the city to the near center- and some of his awareness had returned. Which brought up the interesting questions of just _how_ he had managed to move her and whether moving Yuffie had jostled her injuries, but then it probably had been the adrenaline from seeing his friend's motionless body on the floor that gave Lea the strength to lift her and if he_ had_ hurt Yuffie on accident, Aerith could heal her.

After having delivered the ninja to Aerith, Lea somehow made his way out of a set of double glass doors before slumping unceremoniously down the wall just outside the room he had left. He sat there, back against the wall, as his senses slowly returned to him and memories of the evening came rushing in.

Yuffie…

How could he have been so careless? If he hadn't been so busy trying to off the Soldiers, he would have noticed the ninja's injuries before she fainted! If he hadn't-

But even if he _had_ noticed the state his friend was in, what could he have done? Axel hadn't been known for his curative magic, Lea himself had not learned any cure spells yet. Furthermore, Lea hadn't carried any potions with him at all- _overconfident idiot_- and neither had Yuffie. Or maybe she had, but when Lea had seen her body lying so still on the cold, unforgiving ground, he hadn't thought. At all.

There were a hundred things that Lea could have berated himself for-and what happened to Axel, the one that didn't care whether anyone got hurt or not because he couldn't? But Lea could, and Lea wasn't Axel, and if he kept telling this to himself, it would eventually become a mantra. Even if Lea _had_ been decisively stupid in his actions after Yuffie had collapsed, that was the past, and there was nothing, _nothing_ that redhead could do about it now; it was all up to Aerith, and he had no doubt that a round or two of Curaga spells would have the ninja up and hyper again.

Yet, he still did not understand his actions from before; it was all he could do to not hit himself over the head for being an idiot. Why did he go into shock? Why did- why did anything happen? If he kept thinking too much on this topic, his mind would explode, so with a resolute sigh, he stumbled into a standing position and left the hospital.

Maybe… Maybe he could talk to Isa about this?

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"You're an idiot."

The words that came out of his childhood friend's mouth stung, even though the same words had been said thousands of times before and he _should_ have been perfectly immune to them. But for some reason today he wasn't, and they_ hurt_.

Perhaps it was the force of the statement combined with the chaos that had happened that night that threw his feelings into turmoil, or perhaps it was because he was simply racked with guilt- then again, weren't the former and latter exactly one and the same considering that one led to the other?- but those three, simple words had wounded him like a knife straight into the heart.

"Ouch," Lea replied with a forced smirk that came out more like a grimace.

"-Or was that what you wanted me to say?"

"Huh?" The redhead lifted his head and looked at his friend, confused.

The moment Lea had wearily stumbled into the room that he shared with Isa and collapsed face-down onto his bed, the bluenette had set down the book he had been reading in the redhead's absence and started showering cure spell after cure spell on the multiple injuries that Lea hadn't been aware of receiving, _tsk_'ing while he was at it; it was a testament to the usefulness of Ienzo's training- _torture_- classes that Isa didn't feel the least bit tired as he casted one spell after another. At the sound of Lea's confused voice though, Isa stopped in his attempts to heal the redhead and lifted his face from the injuries he was currently probing, turning his golden eyes on his best friend with a deadpan expression.

"You_ did_ tell me to call you an idiot earlier."

Lea blinked, feelings of hurt ebbing away. _He had?_

Reading the look on his friend's face, Isa sighed in annoyance, "Yes, you had five minutes ago, right before you landed on your mattress. But that's a moot point now, considering that you clearly don't remember- short term memory loss, perhaps?- and… Are you all right?"

Lea nearly laughed at the last statement. _Did he feel all right?_ Preposterous! He had seen a friend nearly die (or at least it had looked that way when blood nearly decorated the entire of Yuffie's body) and now his… best friend was asking if he _felt all right_? Ha, what kind of stupid question_ was_ that?

However, even with his slightly hysterical state of mind, Lea understood that Isa was being sincere in his worries, so he forced out an "I'm perfectly fine" only to receive a harsh dig at one of his unhealed bruises.

"Ouch!" the redhead cried, wincing from the pain but making no moves to lift himself into a less vulnerable position. "I said I was perfectly fine- Yow!- Isa, stop it!" The bluenette had taken to prodding at his friend's wounds forcefully instead of curing them, evidently displeased by Lea's pitiful attempts at lying. Lea cursed softly when his eyes met Isa's probing ones, and he knew that he couldn't get away from this. "I'll tell you once I get my head under control," he sighed, offering the words as a peace treaty.

Isa allowed the subject to drop, returning to his duty of casting cure spells.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

It was always so dark here, almost as if the sun god himself despised the lands, avoiding them with vengeance on his daily circuit in the sky. It could have been day- it could have been night- and still the lands would remain unchanged, appearing as nothing more than a vast expanse of emptiness. Yet even with such dim lighting and a foreboding appearance, the area itself was peaceful, save for the occasional stray Heartless or two.

"Leon."

The dark-haired man turned his head almost imperceptibly to acknowledge the speaker. His ice blue eyes were narrowed in concentration, surveying the dark, barren lands before him.

"I'm sure that you already know this, but the Heartless are increasing in numbers."

Leon slowly shifted his eyes from the wasteland to meet the troubled emerald orbs that belonged to Aerith. Without commenting on her statement, he harshly asked, "Why are you here?"

"To tell you about the disturbing increase in the amount of Heartless near Radiant Gardens," the flower girl patiently said.

"No. What I meant to say was, 'Why are you here when you could have been attacked while coming here?'"

"You know that I can defend myself," she replied innocently. It was true, however, that the frail-looking flower girl could indeed defend herself. She had brought along her staff on the excursion and had powerful magic; she could easily vanquish any Heartless unfortunate enough to try attacking her, with or without her staff- the object was merely an instrument to channel her powers into and give her better control over them.

"But what if a Heartless decided to sneak up on you?" Leon protested in a voice that concealed most of his emotions. Aerith knew better than the let the flat voice affect her; the concern behind the gunblade master's question was quite adorable.

"I would be able to take care of it," she sweetly said before changing the topic- she knew that if given the chance, Leon's mother hen side would appear and start pecking at her. "Either way, you've already noticed the increase in the amount of Heartless though, haven't you?"

And perhaps Leon had even come to a solution to get rid of the Heartless and make the Gardens a safer place for its citizens, for the only reason Aerith knew how to locate the de facto leader of the Committee was because when he wasn't on guard duty or helping rebuild the castle, he was always in the Great Maw, observing _something_. It was all just speculation, however, and _should_ Leon have come to a conclusion, it would be _quite_ likely that he would disclose it to her immediately instead of just standing there silently with the expression of a wall. So for now, it was quite safe to say that even the fearsome leader was at a loss at what to do.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"I wonder if Uncle Scrooge is feeling generous today?" Lea wondered as he strolled aimlessly, Isa flanking his side.

A naked pink color painted the sky, the world's light already beginning its slow descent down the western horizons. The forthcoming darkness brought about the arrival of two exhausted boys in the Marketplace, both whom were only too eager to sink their teeth into a bar of sweet and salty ice cream- if they could get their hands on aforementioned ice cream bars, that was.

The booth where Scrooge McDuck and his three rowdy (and disturbingly identical) nephews set up their synthesis and ice cream shop was unmanned. Lea frowned when he noticed this oddity; at this time, there usually was at least one duck behind the counter selling goods.

"Where are they?"

Lea shrugged peevishly at the question before jogging off on a mad search for the storekeepers. The bluenette, not having expected the sudden spurt of energy from his friend, was delayed in his reaction, and by the time he started to give chase, the redhead was already well-off into the distance.

Isa nearly kissed his legs appreciatively for being longer than Lea's when he finally caught up, jogging steadily to keep pace. However, when he turned to look at his friend to roll his eyes in pure exasperation at the redhead's random actions, Isa could have sworn that instead of Lea, there was a tall, spiky-locked redhead in a dark cloak striding effortlessly alongside him, an tiny, black upside down teardrop marking the location beneath each of his emerald eyes.

The bluenette blinked, and the image was gone, replaced by a much shorter, irate redhead who glared and, with fire almost visibly burning in his eyes due to his passion for ice cream, snapped at his friend to hurry up and help with the search for the ducks.

_xxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Uncle Scrooge?"

The occupants of the dimly lit room snapped their heads up from the papers they had been pouring over prior to the sudden intrusion. Leon nearly cursed at the interruption, sure that they were finally getting somewhere with containing the Heartless situation; Cid, the engineer who built the Radiant Garden's defense system (not that it was that effective considering that patrols had to be sent to actually eliminate the stronger Heartless that the Claymores could only entertain), _did_ curse, allowing a stream of expletives to leave his mouth while Aerith shot him a reprimanding glare for being so uncouth. Merlin stroked his snowy white beard absentmindedly before twirling a finger and magically making the papers vanish while Yuffie merely blinked and grinned when she saw who their company was.

In the silence that quickly followed Cid's release of irritation, the redhead that had interrupted the meeting slowly became aware of how stupid he probably looked, one arm pushed against the wooden door that led into the Committee's meeting place, the other arm arresting the limb of an uncomfortable bluenette that was close to slapping his own forehead in exasperation, and there was a nagging feeling that his eyes must have had streaks of insanity shooting through them in his desperation for ice cream- he imagined that he could almost taste the damned sweet and salty treat melting in his mouth. So yes, Lea was quite pleased when a black blur interrupted the impromptu staring contest between himself and five pairs of eyes, all wearing various degrees of frustration, with a tackle to his chest and a squeal of, "Lea!"

The redhead never looked a gift horse in the mouth, so he quickly let go of the door- which creakily swung shut with a slam- and dropped Isa's arm- much to the bluenette's relief- before returning the (very forceful) hug with one of his own, exclaiming, "Yuffie! You look better already!"

The girl actually did look better: there was no giant chasm that ran across her arm, and her clothes were no longer covered in blood. The color had returned to her face along with the sparkle in her eyes, and it was all Lea could do to not break down in tears of happiness- _too girly_- at the sight of his recovered friend.

"Yeah!" The ninja relinquished her hold on Lea's body and hopped back a few steps before jabbing a finger to his chest. "But what exactly are you doing here, crashing a meeting like this? Shouldn't you be with Ienzo?"

"Training ended half an hour ago," the redhead replied flippantly, before remembering the issue at hand, "But wait! Do you know where Uncle Scrooge or the three midgets are?"

"They probably are visiting Disney Castle," a bored looking Cid who had been watching the exchange quietly chose that moment to speak up, twirling a twig distractedly in his hand. Yuffie bounded over to the pilot and stood behind his chair, resting her head on his broad shoulders, eyes glimmering mischievously.

"-Huh?"

Yuffie hopped from where she was standing to an unoccupied wooden chair, rolling her eyes and saying, "The ducks took the Gummi Ship and flew off, Lea."

"Oh."

"Oh, indeed," the ninja said in a comical imitation of a certain (thankfully not present) silvery-blue haired healer.

Lea averted his eyes from his audience and turned to face Isa, who was no longer rubbing his abused arms, but staring confusedly at the redhead. Lea nearly cursed when he realized that _of course_ Isa wouldn't understand the comments about Gummi Ships and Disney Castle because he had kept every piece of information pertaining to the existence of different worlds away from the amnesic boy. None of the Committee members knew about the fact that he was trying to prevent Isa's memories of his Nobody days from surfacing, either. Which meant… _Damn_. He had to save the situation before it got out of hand.

The redhead playfully shoved his "best friend" for not helping him when Yuffie had humiliated him in front of the Committee members before shrugging his shoulders and, pushing his ice cream craving aside temporarily while hoping to the nonexistent deity that lived up in the sky that Isa wouldn't question him about Gummi Ships, asked the room at large, "So what were you guys discussing?"

Indefinable glances were exchanged by the occupants seated around the circular table in the center of the room before Aerith gently smiled and said, "How to get rid of the Heartless permanently."

The interests of the two who had interrupted the meeting were immediately caught; the two each sat in an unoccupied seat surrounding the round table and leaned forward, eager to hear more- even Isa allowed blatant curiosity to show on his normally stoic face. If there was a way to finally vanquish the dark creatures that plagued their home- and both boys considered the Gardens their home; of course, Isa, having woken up with no memory of his own had been fed just enough information to believe that he had lived in the Gardens all his life (not that he suspected otherwise), while Lea had taken some time to overcome the initial shock of finding himself alive in his old home again before finally accepting the warmth and comfort it offered- then they wanted to know.

"So, any ideas?" Lea asked excitedly, nearly jumping up and down his seat in anticipation.

"No." The blunt answer came from Leon, the de facto Committee head. "Unless you can somehow get a hold of the Keyblade Master, the most we can do is to slaughter the Heartless and hope that they do not reform immediately."

Lea raised an eyebrow, never having heard the taciturn leader speak so much before, and then promptly slumped back into his chair, disappointed. "I guess hoping for a miracle was too much, huh?" he lamented, heart plummeting with the realization that nothing could be done to stop the Heartless and-

"Why can't you just send a Gummi Ship to pick up the Keyblade Master from his world?"

Everyone save for a certain redhead blinked and stared at the bluenette in wonder and amazement. Isa grew visibly uncomfortable after the scrutinizing looks he was given- one or two he could take, but five was too much- before wondering at the words that had come out of his mouth. He had not been consciously aware of speaking them until they were already past his lips, and even then, he could hardly make sense of them. He had heard of the Keyblade Master before, the legendary figure mentioned several times in passing by others, but he had thought it was a fairy tale. And _Gummi Ship_... There was that term again- hadn't he just been about to ask what it was before Lea had deliberately (and inelegantly) steered the conversation away from that?

Just as Isa once again tried to inquire as to what "Gummi Ships" were- and also in an effort to break the uncomfortable feeling of being gawked at- he turned to his side and saw Lea's pale face looking back at him, fear visible in his unusually wide emerald orbs. Seeing his friend with such an unusual expression on his face- where were the usual overconfident or excited smiles that he was so accustomed to receiving? Where were the smirks or the few glimpses of depression that the redhead sometimes allowed to crack through his cheerful mask?- was enough to make the bluenette stop himself.

Awkward silence reigned.

None of the Committee members understood what the sudden tension in the air was about, save for the ever perceptive Aerith who wisely chose to shatter the silence with a thoughtful, "He has a good point, actually."

The rest of the present Committee members immediately latched on to her words and broke out into excited murmurings amongst themselves, allowing for Isa to grab the petrified Lea and slip away.

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SPECULATING-END

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**Thank you for sticking with me so far, everyone! As usual, thank you for being so patient- I know that my updates are as sporadic and infrequent as they come, so I am extremely grateful for the wide capacity of patience you all have.**

**By the way, since it never specifically mentions what happens to Gummi Ships at the end of KHII, they still exist in this story.  
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**Next chapter:**

_"Are you keeping something from me?"_**  
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